October 13, 2016 – Officers Meeting

George Mason University

Minutes of the Retired Faculty Association – Officers Meeting

October 13, 2016, 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM mtg.

Merton Hall 1402

Present:  Esther Elston, Joseph Lieb, Jim Sanford, Janice Sutera, Veronique Klimonda.

I.  The meeting began at 10:05 PM. Jim Sanford presided.

II.  Membership and Organization (Jim Sanford, Veronique Klimonda)

A. Pre-Retirement Seminar day for Mason faculty and staff is Friday, November 18, 2016. HR invited RFA executive committee to attend the luncheon and meet future retirees.  Jim Sanford will introduce himself and Janice. Janice will give a 15-minute overview of RFA immediately after the luncheon.

B. Welcome Message to new retirees: Jim is composing a welcome message/letter to be inserted into the HR Retirement Packet given to retirees upon retirement.

Action: Jim and Veronique will connect on logistics.

C. Annual Email to all members: Action: RFA President to send annual email in late summer/early fall to preview the new year’s activities and to invite active participation and registration in database. Action: Bob will introduce Jim Sanford to “back-end” of website so Jim is able to make changes and to send notices to members.

D. People Finder: Veronique identified the Association’s email address as rfa@gmu.edu and suggested we change our physical address to the HR address within People Finder.

Action: Veronique will contact the Information Technology office to identify specific “owners” of the email address. Once info is garnered, executive committee will discuss further.

E. Faculty-Staff Retiree Organization (Veronique)

Mason retired staff expressed interest in starting a retiree organization or joining Mason RFA.  Veronique offered samples of faculty-staff retiree organizations and their websites, e.g., Kent State, Rutgers, UT at Austin, Virginia Tech, Penn State, Cal Poly, WVU.

Action: Veronique will send association website addresses to executive committee.  Veronique will send contact info on staff retirees who expressed interest in the association to Jim Sanford.  Interested staff names and contacts could be collected during the pre-retirement seminar on November 18. Further discussion by executive committee requested.

 III. Mason Club – new faculty and staff dining room and lounge

A. Scheduled to open January on the Fairfax campus, ground floor of the Hampton Roads residence hall in the Pilot House. See website for further details: http://shopmason.gmu.edu/mason-club/

IV. Programming/Events (Jim Sanford)

A. Event Review and Marketing:

  1. Suggestions regarding Pohick Bay Regional Park boat tour and lunch:
  • several participants mentioned they would enjoy more data collection and reporting on previously collected data;
  • enjoyed lunch, some may need more clarity about what to bring to share with others.
  1. Marketing for Tom Davis’ 2016 elections retrospective on Nov. 10:
    • Bob E. requested Julie M. share the event with her academic dept. colleagues
    • Veronique will send Jim S. the Mason media contact who could be invited to attend and write an article about the event and RFA sponsorship. Action: Jim will discuss with Bob E.
    • Veronique noted that the Nov. 10 event could be listed in E-files/Around Mason (weekly faculty-staff email). Action: Jim, Bob, and Veronique will discuss particulars and decide.

B. Fall 2016 Event Plans: See website for updates: https://rfa.gmu.edu/activities/featured-events/

  1. Nov 10 at 10:30 AM, Johnson Center, Room B (3rd floor), Mason campus. Talk by Tom Davis, current BOV Rector, former Congressman – his ‘take’ on the 2016 election results
  2. Dec 7, 10:30 AM – Guided tour of Luray Caverns with Emeritus Professor of Chemistry, Doug Mose, $26/person

C. Fall 2016 Event attendance:

  1. Oct 12, 10:30 AM – Pohick Bay Regional Park Guided boat tour of the river ecology with Chris Jones. Attendance: 5 + 7 = 12
  2. Sept 14 – Tour of Gunston Hall– with docent and Mason retiree, Libby Hall. Attendance = 16 for tour and box lunch

D. Spring 2017 Event Plans

  1. Jan 12, 10:30 AM – noon — Guided tour of National Cryptological Museum (on NSA grounds), followed by lunch at the Rams Head Tavern
  2. Feb 8, 10:30 AM — Guided tour of Mason’s Rooftop Greenhouse (Exploratory Hall), by Monica Marcelli, Greenhouse manager
  3. March 22, 1130 AM — Talk by Patrice Winter, Assistant Professor, Global and Community Health, on Aging in Place: Do not blame the house.
  4. April 12, 10:30 — Talk by Marion Deshmukh, Robert T. Hawkes Emeritus Professor of History, about German Art and Politics based on her recent book.
  5. May 10,1030 AM– Talk by Evans Mandes, Professor of Psychology Emeritus, talk on Interpreting Visual Art based on his recent book

V.  2016-17 Executive Committee Meetings

A.  10 after Tom Davis event (about noon) either in Mason Hall or in Johnson Center TBD

 VI.  Adjournment: About 11:30 AM

Respectfully submitted,

Janice Sutera Wolfe, Ph.D.

2012 Retiree